Ricciardo needs to 'blow Vergne apart' to impress Red Bull

Making his first media appearance in Melbourne on Tuesday, the Australian stated that only exceptional performances this year will secure him promotion from Toro Rosso in the event that Mark Webber moves on.

"If myself and Jean-Eric are matching each other this year, it is probably not going to be enough," Ricciardo told selected media including AUTOSPORT at the event in the city.

"I definitely want to try and blow it apart if I can - do something special..."

Ricciardo knows that setting specific result targets now is too difficult because of uncertainty about how competitive Toro Rosso will be in 2013, but he suggests that sights should be set on the podium.

"Podiums would be great but we really have to see where we are, and how competitive we are as a team," he explained.

"Even if the first few races don't go particularly to plan, come the European season we will have quite a few updates and things to be positive about."

When asked for how things were with his team-mate, Ricciardo said: "They are OK and nothing has really changed between us.

"We've been competitive through a few years and the relationship has become more competitive, so to speak, because a lot is on the line.

"I don't think any team-mates are probably great friends. I think Mark can answer that question as well.

"It is just how it is and how it probably should be. If you are too close to someone you will probably not go 110 per cent against them, so it is good to have that fighting spirit."